Ok, so the AA didn’t actually use the words in the headline, but a survey it’s done has revealed that almost 50 percent of respondents would be drawn in by a car advertised at significantly less than its market value. Around one third admit they’d be interested in buying a car if it were priced at half the market value, albeit with a note of caution.

Obviously the old adage about never eating yellow snow a deal being too good to be true applies here, but the AA quantifies it: “buyers should never be tempted by vehicles advertised for less than 70% of their market price, as a suspicious bargain could turn out to be a clone or worse, leaving the buyer severely out of pocket,” said a spokesperson.

Amanda Moore of the AA added: “It’s easy to be tempted by a vehicle with a rock bottom price, but buyers need to think about it from the seller’s perspective – would they sell a car for a third of its value?

“Most cars masquerading as a bargain have something to hide. We urge buyers to conduct a vehicle history check to protect themselves from the risk of buying a vehicle that could be stolen, cloned, on outstanding finance or an insurance write-off.”

And how can you do that?

…Why, you could buy an AA Car Data Check, of course. It’s what Gandhi would do.